New Year. SameSide.

The future looks bright

January 07, 2019

by Sarah Whitman

It’s 2019. We’re hydrated, we’re prioritizing mental health, and we’re reveling in the new, diverse Congress we helped elect (hello Kyrsten Sinema being sworn in by Mike Pence). We did a lot of big things last year: advocated on behalf of migrant children, made thousands of calls before the midterm elections, and had 175 legislative wins.

As we look forward into 2019 and beyond (whatup, 2020), here's where we at SameSide will be directing our energy to spread #powerthroughpeople. We’re rolling out some big things and we can’t wait for you to get involved.

Brand Ambassadors

Have you heard? SameSide is looking for Brand Ambassadors! Our Brand Ambassadors are executing community building by placing Activism Touchpoints in their favorite stores, shops, and businesses. Activism Touchpoints are displays that allow guests to take action for the issues they care about in the businesses they love! Keep a lookout for Activism Touchpoints in the stores near you. If you're interested in becoming a Brand Ambassador, fill out this form.

Women’s Empowerment

It’s 2019 and women still don’t have equal pay. Yes, we’re serious. Let’s make this the year we make our voices heard for equal pay across gender. To take action now, text MONEYHONEY to 52886 and support the Paycheck Fairness Act.

LGBTQ+ Equality

Speaking of equality...we’re rallying around an awesome piece of legislation called the Equality Act. This bill is backed by Human Rights Campaign and was shown to have bipartisan support by an independent study. The Equality Act adds language to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that explicitly protects gender identity and sexual orientation under the law. Text EQUALITY to 52886 to show support for the LGBTQ+ community.

Immigration Reform

As the most recent government shutdown has proven, Trump is still obsessed with “The Wall”. Instead of building a $5 billion piece of cr*p, let’s put energy into protecting the 800,000 Dreamers who came here as children and still don’t have full citizenship. That’s right, people! The whole Defend DACA debacle is still underway. A new Dream Act would provide Dreamers the opportunity to apply for permanent legal status and eventually become eligible for U.S. citizenship. Text DREAMER to 52886 to encourage legislators to pass a clean Dream Act.

Sensible Gun Solutions

If you’ve seen Childish Gambino’s This is America you pretty much get the picture about this one. But in all seriousness, gun violence is still a huge problem in the U.S., and people still can’t seem to come to an agreement on the issue. Or can they? Far-right groups and politicians have been telling the public that it’s a Democrat vs. Republican issue, but the truth is that most of the solutions we’re advocating for are bipartisan. For example, 90% of Americans support expanding background checks on gun sales. Show your support and text SENSIBLE to 52886.

Criminal Justice Reform

We had a big win for criminal justice reform in 2018 with the passage of the First Step Act. This bipartisan bill allows for more good time credits, provides incentives for inmates who participate in vocational and education classes, move inmates closer to home, and much more. One issue we need to focus on is the legalization of marijuana federally, and sentence reform for the disproportionate number of people (mainly people of color) who are incarcerated for drug crimes. The Marijuana Justice Act would not only legalize marijuana federally but would also expunge convictions for marijuana sale and possession. To help #legalizeit text MARYJANEto 52886.

Climate Change

Climate change and global warming have been hot topics lately (get it?) as multiple scientific assessments have stated that we need to get our sh*t together or the world will catch on fire. We may be paraphrasing. 2019 is the time to step up and fight for our planet with the help of the one and only Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Before she was even sworn in, Ocasio-Cortez drafted an outline for legislation she calls the Green New Deal. The Green New Deal would create new, green jobs to simultaneously save the planet and stimulate job growth. For more information and to show your support, text ACT GREEN to 52886.

So that’s what we’re up to in 2019! We have lots of exciting experiences coming up and we’re rolling out some new features as the year progresses. If we didn’t mention the issue you’re passionate about, don’t worry! Either shoot us an email at info@onsameside.com or apply to be a host and create an experience of your own. Thank you to everyone who has supported us for the past two years. We can’t wait to show you more this year.